Bengals lead Browns 7-0 after 1st quarter

CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Browns mounted a strong first drive Sunday afternoon at Cleveland Browns Stadium, but fell behind the Cincinnati Bengals after the first quarter.

The Browns forced a Bengals three-and-out to open the game, and drove 59 yards to the Bengals’ 27. But quarterback Brandon Weeden’s first-down pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage by Cincinnati’s Geno Atkins and intercepted by Michael Johnson.

Three plays later, Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham scored on a 55-yard touchdown pass from Andy Dalton in which he stiff-armed linebacker Craig Robertson and outran Joe Haden and T.J. Ward to the end zone.

Trent Richardson touched the ball nine times in the first quarter, rushing for 23 yards on seven carries and catching two passes for 17 yards. Weeden was 6-of-10 in the quarter, for 61 yards.

The Browns’ first drive included rookie Josh Cooper’s first two catches as a pro; Cooper was Weeden’s college teammate at Oklahoma State and was promoted to the Browns’ active roster before the game. Those two catches went for 39 yards.

Backup running back Montario Hardesty carried the ball for the first three times this season, for 10 yards.